D&C 110:12-13; “Visions manifested to Joseph Smith the Prophet and Oliver Cowdery in the temple at Kirtland, Ohio, April 3, 1836…After
this, Elias appeared, and committed the dispensation of the gospel of Abraham, saying that in us and our seed all generations after us should be blessed. 13 After this vision had closed, another great and glorious vision burst upon us; for Elijah the prophet, who was taken to heaven without tasting death, stood before us…”
1 Kings 17:1; “And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.”
James 5:17; “Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.”
The transliteration for Elias is Ēlias.
Elias is the Greek form of the Hebrew name for Elijah. The name Elijah means ‘my God is Yahweh’.
Our question for the day is this:
How could Elias appear to Smith and friends as two different people if Elijah and Elias are the same person?
We don’t doubt Smith saw a vision, nor do we doubt he saw an apparition in that temple. We do however, doubt it was Elijah! If anything, the things Smith saw were nothing more than demons.
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